Airplane! is a 1980 American disaster comedy film written and directed by Jim Abrahams and brothers David and Jerry Zucker in their directorial debut, and produced by Jon Davison. It stars Robert Hays and Julie Hagerty and features Leslie Nielsen, Robert Stack, Lloyd Bridges, Peter Graves, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and Lorna Patterson. It is a parody of the disaster film genre, particularly the 1957 Paramount film Zero Hour!, from which it borrows the plot, central characters, and some dialogue. It also draws many elements from Airport 1975 and other films in the Airport series. It is known for using surreal humor and fast-paced slapstick comedy, including visual and verbal puns, gags, running jokes, and dark humor.
Leslie William Nielsen was a Canadian actor and comedian. With a career spanning 60 years, he appeared in more than 100 films and 150 television programs, portraying more than 220 characters.
Kurtwood Larson Smith is an American actor. He is known for playing Clarence Boddicker in RoboCop (1987), Robert Griggs in Rambo III (1988), and Red Forman in That '70s Show (1998–2006) and That '90s Show (2023–2024), as well as for his many appearances in science fiction films and television programs. He also starred in the seventh season of 24. He voiced Gene on Regular Show (2012–2017), portrayed Leslie Claret on Patriot (2015–2018), and Old Man Peterson on The Ranch (2017–2020).
Cherie Ann Currie is an American singer, musician, actress, and artist. Currie was the lead vocalist of the Runaways, a rock band from Los Angeles, in the mid-to-late 1970s. She later became a solo artist. Currie and her identical twin sister, Marie Currie, released the album Messin' with the Boys in 1980 as Cherie & Marie Currie. Their duet "Since You Been Gone" reached number 95 on US charts. She is also known for her role in the 1980 film Foxes.
Christopher Daniel Barnes, also known professionally as C. D. Barnes, C. B. Barnes and Chris Barnes, is an American actor, writer, and former child model. He is best known for his voice role as the title superhero of the 1990s animated series Spider-Man (1994–1998) and as Prince Eric in The Little Mermaid (1989), as well as his on-screen portrayal of Greg Brady in the films The Brady Bunch Movie (1995) and A Very Brady Sequel (1996).
Peri Gilpin is an American actress who portrayed Roz Doyle in the NBC sitcom Frasier and Kim Keeler in the ABC Family drama series Make It or Break It.
Ted McGinley is an American actor. He is known for his roles as Jefferson D'Arcy on the television sitcom Married... with Children and as Charley Shanowski on the ABC sitcom Hope & Faith. He was a late regular on Happy Days, Dynasty and The Love Boat and is known for playing the villainous role of Stan Gable in the film Revenge of the Nerds and several made-for-television sequels.
Stephen Root is an American actor. He has starred as Jimmy James on the NBC sitcom NewsRadio (1995–1999), as Milton Waddams in the film Office Space (1999), and voiced Bill Dauterive and Buck Strickland on the animated series King of the Hill (1997–2010).
Police Squad! is an American crime comedy television series that was broadcast on the ABC network in 1982. It was created by David Zucker, Jim Abrahams, and Jerry Zucker, starring Leslie Nielsen as Frank Drebin. A spoof of police procedurals and many other television shows and movies, the series features Zucker, Abrahams, and Zucker's usual sight gags, wordplay, and non sequiturs. It resembles the Lee Marvin police show M Squad and the late 1960s series Felony Squad. It was canceled after six episodes, and yielded The Naked Gun film series from 1988 to 1994.
Nancy Ann Travis is an American actress. She began her career on Off-Broadway theater, before her first leading screen role in the ABC television miniseries Harem opposite Omar Sharif. Her breakthrough came in 1987, playing Sylvia Bennington in the comedy film Three Men and a Baby. She later starred in its sequel, Three Men and a Little Lady (1990).
Frank Theodore Levine is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as Jame Gumb in the film The Silence of the Lambs (1991) and Leland Stottlemeyer in the television series Monk (2002–2009).
Peter Szymon Serafinowicz is an English actor, comedian, director and screenwriter. His film roles include the voice of Darth Maul in Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace (1999), Pete in Shaun of the Dead (2004), Garthan Saal in Guardians of the Galaxy (2014), the voice of Big Daddy in Sing (2016) and Sing 2 (2021), and The Sommelier in John Wick: Chapter 2 (2017).
Jacqueline Obradors is an American actress. She has appeared in films such as Six Days, Seven Nights (1998), Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo (1999), Tortilla Soup (2001), A Man Apart (2003) and Unstoppable (2004). She is also the voice of Audrey Rocio Ramirez in Atlantis: The Lost Empire. On television, Obradors is known for her role as Detective Rita Ortiz in the ABC crime drama series NYPD Blue (2001–2005).
John Keith Vernon was a Canadian actor. He made a career in Hollywood after achieving initial television stardom in Canada. He was best known for playing Dean Wormer in Animal House, the Mayor in Dirty Harry and Fletcher in The Outlaw Josey Wales.
Airplane II: The Sequel is a 1982 American parody film written and directed by Ken Finkleman in his directorial debut and starring Robert Hays, Julie Hagerty, Lloyd Bridges, Chad Everett, William Shatner, Rip Torn, and Sonny Bono. A sequel to the 1980 film Airplane!, it was released on December 10, 1982.
Julie Beth Hagerty is an American actress. She starred as Elaine Dickinson in the films Airplane! (1980) and Airplane II: The Sequel (1982). Her other film roles include A Midsummer Night's Sex Comedy (1982), Lost in America (1985), What About Bob? (1991), She’s the Man (2006), A Master Builder (2014), Instant Family (2018), Noelle, Marriage Story, and A Christmas Story Christmas (2022).
Richard Joseph Libertini was an American stage, film and television actor.
Wavelength is a 1983 science fiction film written and directed by Mike Gray and starring Robert Carradine, Cherie Currie, and Keenan Wynn.
The Naked Gun media franchise consists of several American crime spoof-comedies, based on an original story written by the comedy filmmaking trio Zucker, Abrahams and Zucker. The installments include one television series and three theatrical films. The plot centers on a police detective with a lot of heart, despite being less than intelligent. Leslie Nielsen stars in each installment in the protagonist role of Detective Sergeant Franklin "Frank" Drebin, with a fourth film starring Liam Neeson as Frank Drebin Jr. scheduled for release in 2025. The franchise was met with mostly positive critical reception, and the films were a financial box office success.
Scott Whyte is an American actor, best known for his role as Chris Anderson on City Guys. He has also appeared in television series such as That '70s Show and Just Shoot Me! and the films D2: The Mighty Ducks and its sequel, D3, as different characters.
